Egypt Travel Tips: Essential Advice for First-Time Visitors

What should you know before your first trip to Egypt?

The most useful things to know are: check visa and Smartraveller advice before booking, budget for tipping, carry small cash, dress modestly, drink bottled water, plan sightseeing for early mornings, and book a private licensed guide for the major sites.

Egypt is easy to love and occasionally exhausting. The sites are spectacular and the people are generous and funny, but the pace, traffic, heat and constant small transactions can surprise first-timers. A well-planned itinerary with internal flights, good hotels and an Egyptologist guide removes most of the friction. Start with our Egypt visa guide for Australians, our is Egypt safe guide and our Egypt itinerary ideas. Visa rules and fees change, so always confirm on the official e-Visa portal (visa2egypt.gov.eg) and Smartraveller (smartraveller.gov.au).

Should you use cash or cards in Egypt?

Use cards for hotels, upmarket restaurants, larger shops and museums, and cash (Egyptian pounds) for tips, taxis, markets, small cafés and toilets.

• Currency: the Egyptian pound (EGP, written LE or ج.م locally). Common notes are 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 EGP. The exchange rate has moved sharply in recent years, so check a live rate before you go.
• Cards: Visa and Mastercard are widely accepted in hotels, cruise ships and malls. Many ticket offices at major sites, including the pyramids and the GEM, have moved to card payments. Amex is less widely accepted.
• ATMs: plentiful in cities and tourist towns. Use ATMs attached to banks (Banque Misr, National Bank of Egypt, CIB) and during business hours if possible, in case the machine swallows your card. Choose to be charged in EGP, not AUD, to avoid poor conversion rates.
• Bring: a travel-friendly card with low foreign transaction fees, a backup card kept separately, and some clean US dollars for emergencies and larger tips.
• Exchange: change money at banks, official bureaux or your hotel. Never change money on the street.
• Break big notes whenever you can – small change is precious. See our tipping guide.

How do you get a SIM card or eSIM in Egypt?

The easiest options are a travel eSIM bought online before you leave, or a local SIM from Vodafone, Orange, Etisalat (e&) or WE at the airport arrivals hall on landing; you'll need your passport.

• Local SIMs are cheap and give you an Egyptian number for calling drivers, restaurants and WhatsApp. Airport kiosks charge more than city stores but save time.
• eSIMs: travel eSIM apps offer data-only plans for Egypt that work the moment you land, which is ideal if you don't need a local number. Egyptian networks also offer eSIMs in their stores. Check your phone supports eSIM and is unlocked.
• Roaming with an Australian carrier works but is usually far more expensive.
• Phones brought into Egypt: Egypt has introduced registration rules for imported mobile phones; at the time of writing tourists using their own phone temporarily are not affected, but check if you plan to stay for months.
• Wi-Fi is available in most hotels and cruise ships but can be slow, particularly on the Nile.

What power plugs does Egypt use?

Egypt uses type C and type F plugs (two round pins) at 220V and 50Hz, so Australians need a plug adaptor but not a voltage converter for most devices.

Australian appliances are rated for 230–240V, so phones, laptops, cameras and most hairdryers work fine on Egypt's 220V supply – just check the label says 100–240V or 220–240V. Bring two or three adaptors, or one adaptor plus a small Australian power board, since older hotels and cruise cabins may have only one or two sockets near the bed. USB charging ports are common in newer hotels.

Can you drink the tap water in Egypt, and how do you stay healthy?

Don't drink the tap water in Egypt; use sealed bottled water or filtered water supplied by your hotel or cruise ship, and take sensible food precautions, sun protection and comprehensive travel insurance.

• Water: bottled water is cheap and sold everywhere – check the seal. Most good hotels and ships provide it free in rooms. Brush your teeth with bottled water if you have a sensitive stomach.
• Food: freshly cooked, hot food is safest. Be cautious with salads and unpeeled fruit at basic places. Hotel and cruise kitchens catering to international guests are generally reliable.
• Stomach upsets: pack rehydration salts and your doctor's recommended remedies. Pharmacies are excellent and many pharmacists speak English.
• Vaccinations: see your GP or a travel clinic six to eight weeks before departure; hepatitis A and typhoid are commonly recommended for Egypt.
• Sun and heat: SPF 50+, a hat and water, even in winter.
• Travel insurance: essential. Make sure it covers medical evacuation, any activities such as ballooning, diving or desert camping, and that you've checked the policy's terms against the current Smartraveller advice level for the regions you're visiting.

What are the photography and drone rules in Egypt?

Drones are restricted in Egypt and need prior government permits that tourists rarely obtain – don't bring one, as customs routinely confiscate them at the airport. Photography with phones and cameras is allowed at most sites, but tripods, professional gear and flash are restricted.

• Phones and cameras: personal photography is permitted at the pyramids, most temples and the Grand Egyptian Museum. Flash is generally banned inside tombs and near delicate paintings. Rules for specific tombs change – your guide will know.
• Tripods and gimbals: may require a permit or be refused at sites and museums.
• Security: don't photograph military sites, soldiers, police, checkpoints, government buildings or some bridges and infrastructure.
• People: always ask before photographing people, especially women, and expect to tip anyone who poses for you.
• Drones: if a drone is found in your luggage, it will usually be held at the airport, possibly until you leave the country, and it can cause delays and questioning. Leave it at home.

How do you haggle and avoid scams in Egypt?

Haggle cheerfully in markets, starting at roughly a third to a half of the first price; agree all prices in advance; and politely ignore unsolicited "help", which is the root of most scams.

Haggling

• Haggling is expected in bazaars such as Khan el-Khalili and Aswan's souq, and for felucca rides, carriage rides and camels. It isn't appropriate in supermarkets, pharmacies or fixed-price shops.
• Decide what an item is worth to you, smile, and be prepared to walk away – that's often when the best price appears.
• Once you agree a price, it's polite to buy.

Common scams

• "It's closed today": a friendly stranger claims your destination is closed and steers you to a papyrus or perfume shop.
• Free gifts: a scarf or bracelet is placed on you, followed by a demand for payment.
• Taxi tricks: drivers without meters, or with "broken" ones. Use Uber or Careem, or agree the fare before you get in.
• Change shortfalls: count your change, and know the difference between 50 piastres and 50 pounds notes.
• Commission shops: some guides earn commissions from shops. With a good private guide, shopping stops are always optional – just say so.

What time zone is Egypt in, and does it have daylight saving?

Egypt is on Eastern European Time, UTC+2, and observes daylight saving (UTC+3) from the last Friday of April to the last Thursday of October.

Egypt reintroduced daylight saving in 2023 after several years without it. Because Australia's daylight saving runs in the opposite season, the time difference changes through the year. Sydney and Melbourne are 7 hours ahead of Egypt in the Australian winter, 9 hours ahead in the Australian summer, and 8 hours ahead for a few weeks in April and October. Brisbane, which doesn't observe daylight saving, is 7 or 8 hours ahead, and Perth is 5 or 6 hours ahead. Double-check when booking calls or flights around April, October and November, when the clocks change on different dates.

How do you get around Cairo?

The easiest way for visitors to get around Cairo is a private driver with your tour, or Uber and Careem for independent trips; both rideshare apps work well across the city and to the pyramids and GEM.

• Uber and Careem: reliable, inexpensive, with fixed upfront pricing and card or cash payment. Share your trip with someone and check the number plate before getting in.
• Traffic: Cairo's traffic is legendary. Allow an hour or more from downtown to Giza at peak times, and plan sightseeing by area.
• Metro: cheap and efficient for some routes (with women-only carriages), but crowded and less useful for tourist sites.
• Crossing roads: cross with locals, at a steady pace, and never hesitate in the middle.
• Between cities: fly between Cairo, Luxor, Aswan and the Red Sea; the overnight sleeper train between Cairo and Luxor or Aswan is an experience in itself.

Our Cairo and Pyramids stopover includes all transfers with a private driver.

What other practical tips should first-timers know?

• Dress: cover shoulders and knees in cities and at sites; women need a headscarf in mosques. See what to wear in Egypt.
• Friday: the weekly day of prayer. Some shops and offices close around midday; the weekend is Friday and Saturday.
• Toilets: carry tissues, hand sanitiser and 10–20 EGP for attendants.
• Alcohol: available in hotels, cruise ships, some restaurants and licensed shops; don't drink in public.
• Useful words: shukran (thank you), la shukran (no, thank you), salam alaikum (hello), inshallah (God willing), yalla (let's go).
• Getting there: there are no direct flights from Australia; most travellers connect through the Gulf or Asia. See our flights from Australia guide.
• Timing: visit from October to April for comfortable temperatures – see best time to visit Egypt.
• Ramadan: dates move each year – read travelling Egypt during Ramadan.

Ready to plan? Tell us how you'd like to travel and we'll design a private itinerary around you.